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Now that Republicans have recaptured the House and made strong gains in the Senate, what’s to keep them on the straight and narrow path of limited government, lower taxes and reduced spending on which they were elected? How can we prevent a repeat of the experience of the last period of Republican control, when the hopes of the Contract with America of 1994 turned so quickly into the earmarks and bloated spending of the last decades?

I have no doubt of the sincerity of most of the Republicans (and a few Democrats) newly elected, especially those elected with significant Tea Party support. They presumably know what got them elected and who is watching their steps now that they are coming to Washington.

But I also know the subtle (and not so subtle) ways that Washington can influence or tempt even the most dedicated officeholders. First, there’s the temptation to be popular in Washington. New members of Congress often think that by placating the Left and official Washington, they’ll be able to thrive in the corridors of power--wrong. The Left will likely toss its Republican “allies” overboard whenever convenient. If NPR can get rid of Juan Williams, why would any new Republican member think that he or she would be treated any differently by the institutional Left? Let’s hope that the people we just elected don’t fall into this trap.

And of course, a new member of Congress wants to help his or her district. Immediately after his election, a vocal group of constituents will approach him about a hospital or a college or other project back home that needs federal money and will bring much-needed jobs to the region. So, the member thinks, why not sponsor an earmark and seek support for it? And having secured support from other members, he will naturally reciprocate by voting for his fellow members’ earmarks. It is easy to see how Congress ended up voting for a record 13,997 special projects in the appropriations bills for Fiscal Year 2005 and $29 billion in pork for Fiscal Year 2006, up 29% from Fiscal Year 2003.

Even more dangerous are the friendly lobbyists. From the moment they arrive in Washington, politicians have to raise money, lots of it, for the next election. No one really likes to get on the phone and ask people for money, unless perhaps it’s for a special charity. Lobbyists are always around and always willing to help. It’s so much simpler to raise it from lobbyists than from real folks--and then so much easier to take the lobbyists’ phone calls and visits after a fundraising breakfast or lunch. Of course, the people have the Constitution-given right to petition Congress for a redress of grievances, but almost by definition, lobbyists represent special interest groups. When money for their re-election is on the line, politicians are more easily persuaded to grant friendly special interest groups the tax breaks, federal money or other favors that they are seeking. And the new members quickly forget that it was their commitment to reduce federal pork that brought them into office in the first place.

Once a new member comes to D.C., most of the people he or she sees are people who want something from them--a vote, an earmark, a tariff, a tax break--rather than people urging them to do the right thing for the country and keep spending low. The members need to listen instead to the people in the middle class and working class who have normal jobs, who don’t go to fancy fundraisers, and who can’t afford to go to Washington every time there’s an important vote in Congress. The members have to make keeping in touch with real Americans a top priority.

For now, it’s a good sign that Republicans are working for a $100 billion budget cut-- 29%of Federal domestic discretionary spending--as they promised in the “Pledge to America.” After all, $100 billion is just one-thirteenth (7%) of the record $1.29 trillion budget deficit (8.9% of Gross National Product) in the last fiscal year. So they ought to be able to get this done easily.

We need our newly elected leaders to work tirelessly to get the country back on a sound financial footing, painful though this will be. And it’s our job to hold them to their promise and let them know that they will not be re-elected if they stray. We will need to use all tools at our disposal--government transparency initiatives, Congressional town halls, the Internet, social networking--to keep our politicians’ feet to the fire and let them know that we are watching.

And if they do the right thing, let’s be sure to thank them. After all, that’s what the lobbyists do.